


Me To You, You To Me

by loeyviosa, sourpatchedkid



Series: Minimal Warm Project [4]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: BaekYeol - Freeform, Cafe meeting, ChanBaek - Freeform, Innocent Gestures, M/M, Meet-cute for Pauie and Baekby, Opening up to stranger
Language: Filipino
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-07
Updated: 2020-12-07
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:55:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27931111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loeyviosa/pseuds/loeyviosa, https://archiveofourown.org/users/sourpatchedkid/pseuds/sourpatchedkid
Summary: Pauie meets a crying stranger from the next table. He offers him a Kitkat, a hug, and his Papa for advice.
Relationships: Byun Baekhyun/Park Chanyeol
Series: Minimal Warm Project [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2045257
Comments: 2
Kudos: 64





	Me To You, You To Me

**Author's Note:**

> To the donor,
> 
> Thank you for your support and generosity. This one is for you. We hope you like it.
> 
> \- Nina and Avy.

From the beginning of their relationship, Chap and Baz agreed to create family traditions for their little unit. Small attitudes, ideas, and ideals that will define the Park-Byun now and the generations to follow. Among all the halloween, birthdays, and Christmas traditions, Chap’s favorite are the mundane ones such as bringing his entire family to work and to school every morning before he starts his own work day.

Today was more special though. It’s Baz’s first day back at work since giving birth to the twins. To say that he was scared was an understatement. Chap was terrified. In the last year, their family would only bring Pauie to school and then spend the whole day back but today, Baz has an actual list of patients to meet and he has to spend the whole day with seven-year-old and two one-year-olds. 

“Yung cafe sa baba sabi nung staff ko may playground na daw.” Baz tells him as they near the parking lot of the hospital. “Bal, feel ko mga hanggang 12 lang naman ako. Sabi ko kay Doc Key, pa-takeover after lunch.” 

“We can have lunch doon sa cafe then?” Chap pulls up in the parking lot and parks the car. He glances at the three carriers with all of his three sleeping babies with worry. Baz lets out a chuckle before unbuckling his seatbelt to give him a kiss. 

“I’ll be back before you know it.” He assures him. “Tara na, let’s take the kids out and I’ll walk you to the cafe before clocking in.” 

Chap answers with a groan but he gets out nonetheless and starts waking up his eldest, Pauie. He picks him up from his seat and allows him to wake up on his own out of the car. The next thing he knows is that his husband is locking the baby carrier around him and placing one of the twins in front of him. Chap reaches for the other twin and hands him to Baz to place him on his back. 

“Pauie, hold dada’s hand first.” Baz tells the oldest. Sleepily, Pauie reaches out for Chap’s hand. Baz kneels down in front of him to pepper his face with kisses. “Behave ka today ha. Help Papa with Eunhae and Yoona. I love you, Paulo Junior.”

Instead of giving an answer, Pauei slumps his entire body on Baz’s shoulder which is a silent  _ pick me up, please  _ in the seven-year-old’s vocabulary. Baz slings his shoulder before picking up Pauie as the Byun-Parks start heading to the door. 

Chap falls in an uncomfortable silence as they walk through the halls of the hospital u until the cafe. Baz, of course, can sense his uncertainty. While they’ve been one of the most experienced parents in their friendship group and Chap’s channel has suddenly become a family channel, they’ve never done things alone in the past year. They were always together. A team. 

“Bal, you’re going to be fine.” Baz assures as he hands the cashier his card for his family’s breakfast. “Gagawa lang ng homework si Pauie tapos pag nagising yung dalawa, maglaro kayo sa ipad or yung flash cards nasa bag nila-- Bal, iiyak ka ba?” 

“No, nasestress lang ako.” Chap squeezes his husband’s hand. “Fine, go be Dr. Byun now.” 

“They call me Dr. BP now.” Baz smiles, taking his coffee from the order station and fixing the strap of his bag on his shoulder. “Byun-Park. Uh, Miss, padala naman nung tray sa table namin kasi baka magising ‘yung mga bata.” Chap mutters a thank you as he walks his husband to the door. 

“Off you go, Dr. BP.” Chap holds the door open for him and leans down for a kiss. “Love you.” 

“I love you too.” He looks behind Chap and to their table. “Pauie, I love you!” Then, he kisses the twins in front and behind Chap. “And you, and you also. I love you four.”

**___________________________**

An hour, two spilled drinks, 2 messy children, and seven waffles later, Chap starts taking out the change of clothes for the twins. Meanwhile, his little man has started answering his homework. His folders are stacked neatly in front of him in one table and on the other are all of their used utensils and their family bag. 

“Anak,” Chap calls him. “Baby, can I leave you for a bit? I need to change the babies’ clothes.” Said babies are running around the almost empty cafe. “A kuya or an ate will come to clean these plates ha. Don’t forget to say thank you.” 

“Okay.” Pauie starts tapping his pencil on his cheek. “Papa, be fast, okay?” 

“Alright.” He kisses the little boy’s hand, takes the baby bag, and runs after his two little girls. True to his word, a staff cleans up their table and Pauie says his thank you. He continues to answer his homework when another customer comes in. He pays no attention though. One of Pauie’s greatest qualities is his ability to focus no matter how chaotic or noisy a place is. It comes with having siblings six years his junior. 

But, what truly takes his attention is the sound of sniffles on the next table. He looks to his side and spots someone wrapped in a jacket, perhaps twice his size, with blonde hair, and round-eyeglasses, scrolling through his phone as he cries silently. Pauie looks away since his parents always taught him to not talk to strangers but he gets distracted again when the sniffles wouldn’t stop even after a while.  _ He’s trying to learn how to subtract, for god's sake!  _ He reaches for the small bag beside him and takes out the Kitkat Bar his Dada Baz slipped in earlier. He walks to the table and stands across the crying stranger. He slides the Kitkat to him and then plops his head on the table--his cheeks jiggle and he smiles at the feeling. He also smiles at the stranger who was a little startled by his actions. 

“Eat it.” Pauie orders. “It’s yummy.” 

The Kitkat is a mini Kitkat clearly designed for kids or people on a diet. The crying stranger puts his phone down to look at him. Pauie is completely resting his chin on the table while bending his entire body lazily. 

“Eat it.” He repeats. 

Unsure of the hows and whys, the crying stranger takes the Kitkat and starts opening it. He eats it in one go, chewing slowly as he watches the reaction of Pauie go from demanding to pleased. 

“See!” He beams. “You stopped crying.”

The crying stranger crumples the wrapper to hide in his pocket but Pauie places his palm in front of him. 

“Give me. I’ll throw it.” 

At this point, the crying stranger is starting to question his own self as to why he’s following orders from a child not older than 10. But, he does anyway. Pauie runs to the trash bin to throw the wrapper and then goes back to his chair as if nothing happened. The crying stranger was a little bit confused so he approaches the next table this time. 

“Thank you.” He says. Pauie looks up from his homework and sighs.  _ Can’t he work on his subtraction in peace? Apparently, not.  _ The stranger is pulling the chair across him. “Ano name mo?”

“Pauie.” He takes out his pre-school ID to show him. He has seen his Dada do this multiple times when he introduces himself in the hospital. “I’m seven. What’s your name?” 

“Baekhyun.” There’s an awkward silence, more for the crying stranger than the child. “Thank you for your Kitkat.”

“Mr. Baekhyun.” The seven-year-old affirms. “It’s okay. Chocolate always makes me stop crying.”

At the thoughtfulness, the crying stranger’s eyes begin to water. Pauie catches the quivering lips and checks his bag for another chocolate but there’s none. So he gets up and stands beside him and opens his arms. 

“You can hug me.” He says, and who was the crying stranger to decline the cutest seven-year-old he’s seen today? He accepts the hug and sniffles on the child’s shoulder. Today was an emotional day for reasons he can’t explain to a child but he’ll take a chocolate and a hug anytime. “Papa said that sad days always pass.” 

As if on cue, Chap comes back with two paddling children in front of him. The twins are clean now and his eldest child is hugging a stranger. Unsure if he should pull him away or watch the scene unfold, he clears his throat and waits for the two of them to part. When the crying stranger pulls away, he’s startled by Chap sitting in front of where Pauie was a while ago. In the same way, Chap is also caught by surprise. 

“Baekhyun Park di ba?” He asks. It was no surprise that the older people knew who he was. After all, he was the primetime anchor in their local news channel. Added to the fact that he’s married to the Mayor of the city. “Pauie, did you say hi properly?”

The child nods. “Binigay ko po ‘yung Kitkat kasi sad siya.” 

“Marunong ka pala mag Tagalog eh.” Baekhyun ruffles Pauie’s hair. “Your kid’s a lifesaver.”

“That, I agree.” Like the dad that he is, he takes out a tissue from his pocket and hands it to Baekhyun. “Pauie, siya ‘yung pinapanuod natin sa news kagabi? Di mo naalala?” 

Pauie looks at Baekhyun and then shakes his head. “Onti lang nareremember ko.” 

His papa chuckles and ruffles his hair. “O, finish your homework. Dada’s orders. Eunhae! Yoona! No leaving without Papa, ha?”

“Three kids, huh?” Baekhyun looks at the family in front and around him. 

Chap nods with a proud smile on his face. Who wouldn’t be if you have a happy and complete big family? “A seven-year-old and two one-year-olds.” He says. “How about you? I mean.. May I ask what the famous news anchor and the husband of the city mayor is doing here alone and was comforted by a little boy who he has just met?” Chap tried to sound not offensive.  _ He really hopes he’s not. _ He’s just merely curious. Pauie is his son after all. 

But instead of answering the question, Baekhyun stares at his hand on the table and asks. “You have three children. Was it this hard during your first time? Noong kay Pauie.” He looks at Chap. “I’m sorry I sound too comfortable right now to ask you this pero siguro may purpose kung bakit dito ako dinala ng mga paa ko. I wanna know…”

“Wanna know what?” Chap leans backward. “How hard is it for first time parents?”

And that’s the time Baekhyun finally nods. “Like what happened today. I came from the hospital for my third prenatal visit and hindi ba dapat hindi ako mag-isa?”

Parang may lightbulb namang nag- _ ting  _ sa ulo ni Chap. He understands it now.

Baekhyun is pregnant but he goes for a checkup all by himself. He supposed that’s the reason why the latter was crying and looks so down even until now that Baekhyun is slowly opening up.

The question is…  _ Nasaan ang asawa nito? Where is the mayor? _

He slowly nods. He can’t just talk yet just to comfort Baekhyun. But he’ll listen. He knows that’s what Baekhyun needs right now. Someone who will listen.

“He promised me na sasamahan niya ako sa lahat ng checkups pero hindi lang naman ‘yon ang ikinaiinis ko.” Baekhyun sighs. “We were so happy and excited hanggang sa unti-unti parang ako nalang ‘yung interesadong malaman lahat ng bagay tungkol sa baby namin. Dati, kahit noong hindi pa ako buntis, he checks up on me every time. I was expecting na mas mapapadalas ‘yon ngayon since there is a growing human inside me now but no… Nabawasan pa. Whenever I tell him about my day, ‘yung mga naramdaman kong pagbabago sa katawan ko, makikinig naman siya but his responses are not as enthusiastic as it was before.  _ He has changed. _ ” The last sentence is almost a mumble. Chap can hear how frustrated and hurt Baekhyun is. 

“Is it because of how I look now? My friends and my brother told me na nagbago daw ‘yung hitsura ko and if our child is a boy, I would be  _ ugly. _ I don’t want to doubt him. I trust him more than anyone else but I can’t help it now. I know this isn’t only because of stress hormones. This is more than that. This is not the pregnancy journey I have dreamt of and expected lalo na with him.” Pagtutuloy pa ni Baekhyun at sa sobrang gana nito maglabas ng sama ng loob, he didn’t see how a smile formed on Chap’s face when he said it wasn’t only because of pregnancy hormones.

_ Marami nang nagsabi non. _

“You haven't told him about this, right?”

Baekhyun shakes his head no. 

“You know Baekhyun, to answer your question kanina, it was not easy but it was a beautiful journey knowing na may paparating na bagong member of the family. In your case, ang unang sayo nanggaling. Someone who you will witness many of their  _ firsts.  _ First talk, first walk.. I’m sure you’d agree to that.”

This time, Baekhyun nods. Chap looks around to check up on his twins and glances at Pauie na patuloy sa paggawa ng homework before giving his attention again to Baekhyun. 

“Lahat naman yata tayo dumating sa point na na-disappoint sa mga mahal natin at ganun din sila satin which is good kasi doon mo nalalaman ito lang pala ‘yung kayang ibigay ng isang tao, hanggang doon lang pala. And you will eventually learn how to embrace it and erase your high expectations na masyado ring mabigat for them because sometimes expectations bring so much pressure to a person and that is not healthy.” Chap says, “But enough of that kasi alam kong alam mo ‘yon. You and your husband. Si mayor, right?”

Baekhyun nods, smiling a little. He may be displeased with his husband right now but he knows why Chanyeol, the city mayor, is well-known and loved by the people. It is because of how he manages the city.

“Ang bigat ‘non. Mayor.” Ang sabi pa ni Chap. Baekhyun frowns.  _ Anong connect? _ “I’m not invalidating your feelings. Believe me, I understand you, but looking on the other side, baka mahirap din para sakaniya. May I ask if never, not even once, he made you feel and your baby special? Sa kabila ng lahat ng nangyayari, mga problemang sakaniya bumabagsak, didn’t he made time for you and your baby? For the past three months of your pregnancy, how many times did he miss a prenatal checkup? Whenever you have cravings, lalo na during the midnight, did he never get up from the bed kahit wala pang dalawang oras simula nang makatulog siya to give you what you want?  _ Did he never?” _

Muling napayuko si Baekhyun because of that and says, “He did. Many times.”

Chap sighs in relief. “Great, because it is his responsibility as your husband and the father of your child. Katulad nalang kung paano niya pagsilbihan ang ilang libong tao, dapat lang ganun din siya sayo but this last question, I’m sure, masasagot din nito lahat ng tanong mo sa sarili mo at sakaniya na hindi mo masabi-sabi.”

“What?” Baekhyun asks.

“Was there a time he made you feel that he is only doing those things and everything he has done for you and your baby because it is his obligation and not because of  _ love _ ?”

And Baekhyun immediately answers,  _ “Never. Not even once.” _

The answer made Chap smile, even wider than kanina. 

“You are partners, Baekhyun, and soon will become a team. Always remember that you won’t win a battle without sharing your plans and worries to each other.  _ Communication. _ That’s the key to understanding each other. Love won’t work if you think your partner won’t understand you. Tell it to him. Mas magandang maagapan bago lumaki ang problema. I’m sure hindi niyo ‘yon parehong magugustuhan.”

Bago pa man makasagot si Baekhyun, a little voice interrupted him. That reminds him na andon nga lang pala si Pauie, naririnig ang lahat ng pinag-usapan nila while finishing his homeworks.

“Papa, isn’t that the mayor? His face was on TV last night!” There’s a tall man outside the coffee shop, texting on his phone while looking around. Pauie’s too excited to see someone from TV. “I saw him on TV! I remember, I remember!”

“Oh, di ba, I make him watch local news para matutong mag tagalog ng tuwid pero ganyan pa rin.” Chap laughs, he squints his eyes and sees the actual mayor about to come into the cafe.

“Papa, he was giving food to people yesterday!” He’s tugging on Chap’s jacket. “People were crying!”

“People were what?” Chap asks. “Di ba si Mr. Baekhyun nag Tatagalog on TV, so sabihin mo rin in Tagalog.” 

Pauie pauses, eyebrows scrunched together. The tall man is already holding the door open for some customers about to exit the shop. Only a few moments and he’d spot Baekhyun. The latter frowns in confusion until he follows Pauie’s finger pointing at the door.  _ There he is.  _ The Mayor. His husband.

“Umiiyak yung mga people,” Pauie starts. “Tapos ni-huhug niya.” And as if he had a  _ Eureka  _ moment, he gasps and points at his Mr. Baekhyun. “Tell him you’re sad, Mr. Baekyun! He’ll hug you too!”

“Pauie, ssh.” He hushes. Then, he scrambles to get up. Bigla namang nataranta si Baekhyun. He’s sure his eyes are still puffy from crying much today. He rises from his seat. Chap and Pauie look at him.

“I’m going to the comfortroom for a while. He can’t see me like this.”

The two let him as he crosses the place with few strides. Good thing, the powder room wasn’t too far from their table.

He washes his face and stares at himself for a little while.

How could he doubt Chanyeol?  _ Mayour? _ Of all people?

Never nagkulang si Chanyeol. His husband is doing his best as the leader of the city, as his better half, and as a father to their child. Now that he had talk with Pauie’s father, saka lang niya narealize na pagod lang si Chanyeol kaya hindi ito mukhang excited minsan makinig sa mga kwento niya but his husband’s eyes never lied. The emotions are there. Happiness, enthusiasm, and gratefulness.

Pauie’s father is right about everything.

Biglang nagsalubong ang kilay ni Baekhyun as he realizes his impudence.

How could he share his problems and worries to someone without even asking their name?  _ Oh god. _

He immediately fixes himself and gets out of the comfort room but as he walks back toward their table, his eyes widened as he sees his husband talking to Pauie’s dad.

“You’re Chap, right?” Rinig niya ang boses nito. Hindi naman kasi kalayuan.

He takes a deep breath. Mabuti pa ang asawa niya kilala ito but  _ how? _

The two shake hands. “It’s an honor to meet you, Mayor, but if I may ask, how did you know?”

It is Chanyeol who is facing his side kaya ito ang nakikita niya. The latter smiled. “I watch your videos about fatherhood advices.”

And Baekhyun feels like crying again. He feels bad for his husband.

Again,  _ how could he doubt Chanyeol? _

But he can’t cry now. Hindi siya nag-ayos para umiyak ulit. He didn’t know what to do. It would be very rude of him if he would just leave lalo pa’t Chap helped him but what would he say to Chanyeol kung lalapitan niya sila? 

He stays where he is. Sa may counter at wala pa siyang balak umalis sana until Pauie looks at his direction.

“He’s there. Mr. Baekhyun’s there.”

Nakita siya agad ni Chanyeol. He didn’t have a chance na makaalis.

He pressed his lips and went closer to the three. Chap’s little girls are still playing.

Nangingiti ang huli.  _ So awkward.  _ Naisip niya. “Do you know them?” The question Chanyeol asks nang makalapit siya. His waist is being wrapped around the latter’s arm.

“Ah…” He’s trying to think of a palusot but Chap happens to help him again. He supposed Baekhyun is still not ready to tell Mayor or at least, not in front of other people. “Bumped into him a couple of times since my husband is a pediatrician at the hospital Baekhyun also visits for prenatal checkup. Kind of a fan. He’s a popular news anchor after all.”

Mayor Chanyeol smiles proudly. It is the same smile Baekhyun saw from Chap earlier.  _ That proud smile whenever someone is talking about people they love. _

“So, paano? Mauna na kami? Babawi pa ako, eh. Hindi ko siya nasamahan ngayon.”

Chap nods. Baekhyun feels a little embarrassed as their eyes meet.

“Uhm, pwede mo ako hintayin sa car? May sasabihin lang ako kay Pauie.” He asks Chanyeol. Kilala na rin nito si Pauie. Naipakilala ni Chap kanina while nasa CR si Baekhyun.

Pumayag naman si Chanyeol at lumabas na. Baekhyun heaves a deep sigh once sila-sila nalang ulit ang nandoon sa table.

“How did you get to talk to him? Nasa labas lang siya kanina bago ako umalis.”

“May nakapagsabi daw kasi sakaniya na nakita ka dito, Mr. News Anchor.” He chuckles. “So he came here until he saw me. I suppose you know why he approached me?”

“Yes, but I didn’t know about that until now.”

Chap taps his shoulder. “He is making an effort to be a good father to your child, Baekhyun. Never doubt him again. Your husband loves and cares about you and your baby.”

Finally, he smiles. Iyong totoo ngayong araw na ‘to. “Thank you.”

Chap just nods at nabaling ang atensyon sa kambal when they heard Yoona screamed. Medyo kinabahan si Chap but turns out masyado itong natuwa sa paglalaro. Still, he excused himself to check the girls, leaving Pauie with Baekhyun.

“It's all thanks to you, little guy.” Baekhyun says as he ruffles Pauie’s hair. The boy is looking up at him. He can’t carry him nor can crouch because of his slightly obvious baby bump so he just stands there. He smiles at the child. “And your Kitkat. It brought me to your dad. He’s a good father.”

“Papa,” Pauie grins proudly. He looks at Chap and gives him a thumbs-up. “My papa’s the best.”

“You’re a smart kid. I hope my baby will grow up like you.”

Chap chimes in, “Knowing his parents, I’m sure he will.”

After a while, nagpaalam na rin si Baekhyun. Ayaw na niyang masyadong paghintayin pa si Chanyeol. When he get into the car, pinaandar na rin nito ang kotse. Isang mahabang katahimikan ang nangyari until the naging pula ang stoplight and took the chance of apologizing to each other.

_ “I am sorry.”  _ Sabay nilang sabi.

Nagsalubong ang kilay ni Baekhyun. Chanyeol was surprised to hear the same words from him.

“For what?” Sabay nanaman sila.

Baekhyun shakes his head.  _ Communication.  _ He has to be honest.

“For thinking that you’re starting to love me less.”

Chanyeol reaches for his hand and quickly kisses it, “And I am sorry for making you feel that way, too. Kahit hindi mo sabihin, alam ko. I’ll be a better husband, Baekhyun.”

He puts his free hand on top of Chanyeol’s and they both smiled at each other. “I love you.”

“I love you  _ two _ more.”

Indeed, they’re not just partners.  _ They are a team. _

Thank you, Chap and Pauie.

**Author's Note:**

> Note: This is a paid work. All proceeds have been donated to the Kaya Natin! Movement and Sagip Kapamilya as of November 22, 2020. (https://tinyurl.com/ProofMWProj2020)
> 
> Feel free to comment or tweet/message us @ravencloey and @__jonginnie (yes, two underscores).


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